Escaping herself
by lksbonesfan
Summary: Follows Pain In The Heart. Brennan realises that maybe her life isn't as complete as she thought and commits herself to live, just a little more. Plenty of fun and fluff, with just a sprinkle of temporary angst.
1. Chapter 1

**I don't own bones... I cry myself to sleep at night wishing I did, boo hoo... **

**Please R&R, this is my first fanfic so please let me know your thoughts...**

Brennan stood, staring at the hospital bed. She knew from her medical expertise, that he almost certainly wouldn't regain full use of his hands again.

Zach had fallen asleep, _probably the effect of the drugs they'd given him, _she thought. She knew they were just waiting, waiting for him to get better before they took him away. _I should be grateful he's not being taken to jail. He wouldn't survive, wouldn't cope behind bars._

Temperance pressed her hand against the glass, just watching, hoping things would get better. She knew it couldn't get much worse. How could this happen? Zack of all people, Zack who has more family, more loved ones than anyone she knows. She'd lost count of how many brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews he had. Zack spoke so affectionately about his family, so how could he become such a cold blooded killer? _Was it something I did? Did I not praise him enough? Was I too tough on him? Push him too hard?_ This was one of those times she wished she could stop analyzing so much.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and knew instantly who it was. She didn't even need to turn around. Three years working beside him she had learnt to sense him around her. It was probably a good thing to have, having to rely on each other in so many dangerous situations. Somehow she always seemed to be the one to rely on him, always her needing him. This was another one of those times.

"You think too much Bones" Booth said, taking his hand off her shoulder and turning so his back was against the window of Zack's hospital room.

Temperance smiled, well not so much a smile as an acknowledgement of him being there. "I didn't expect to see you here Booth, although I k now you love any opportunity to avoid completing your paperwork"

"Somehow Bones, I thought I'd be more use to you here. Besides, it just doesn't feel right, it being Zack and all"

"I'm ok Booth" Temperance said as she got into the elevator with Booth. Not sure where they were going, but not really interested right now. Right now all she could think about was how much of a failure she felt.

"This is me remember Bones. You can't fool me" Booth said as he turned to her.

Stepping closer to her he leaned in. When he was only inches away from her she gasped, holding her breath. _What is he doing? He's gonna kiss me, now? After all this is going on? How dare he? How dare he take advantage of me?_ Just as she was about to speak, tell him how thoughtless he was, how she didn't think of him that way. _Ok that was a lie. _He reached to the side of her and pressed the 'Ground' button, then leaning back away from her, offered a small smile.

Her head leaned against the wall of the elevator and she felt relieved. Not that she hadn't thought about it, about kissing Booth. This wasn't the time. She didn't think there ever would be a time. She had grown close, attached to Booth. Temperance couldn't imagine life without him in it and now, after losing Zack, she realised she needed him more than ever.

"What're you thinking in that over analytical brain of yours Bones?" Booth asked, putting his hand on the small of her back and ushering her out of the elevator towards his 'standard issue SUV'.

"I'm thinking...I'm thinking I really just want to stop thinking. Just for one night"

"Well, there is one sure fire thing I know of to help you with that Bones" he said raising his eyebrows, giving her a smile he knew she just couldn't resist. All she could do was laugh at him and that goofy look on his face. She trusted him, she had to trust him.

With that said Booth turned the wheel of his car, pulling in to Sid's, nothing said late night drunken party for two like Thai food.

"Just wait here for a seconds Bones, I just need to grab a couple of things, ok?" She nodded, knowing he was probably enjoying fussing over her. Normally she'd have given him the 'alpha male' speech, but tonight, after everything that had happened this week, she was just glad it was Friday and she could get away from the lab for just a couple of days.

She dreaded Monday, dreaded going back to the lab she loved so much, the site of this betrayal, the place she felt safe, corrupted. She rubbed a hand through her auburn hair and sighed. She'd figure this out, she had to. Just not tonight.

"Right, we've got Thai, we've got alcohol, now... your place or mine?"

"I bet you say that to all the girls" she retorted, glancing over at him and giving him a sarcastic smile.

"Actually Bones, I don't know where you get this idea of me being a serial romancer from, but I'll have you know, you are one of the few women to have the honour of an invite" he corrected, smiling one of his infamous charm smiles. She laughed. _Good, that's a start._

"Well then Booth, seeing as though we spend most of our get togethers at mine, how about we stick to that tradition. It's worked so far" She just felt more comfortable, secure, at hers and god knows, that's what she needed right now. Temperance Brennan smiled to herself, tonight she was going to do something she rarely did, she was going to get absolutely drunk, forget about everything and just stop thinking. For once, just stop thinking.


	2. Chapter 2

**Thanks for the reviews guys. Got up at 5.30 this morning and the first thing I thought was hmm, did I get any reviews? So thanks, you've made my day and motivated me to write this next chapter... Hope you enjoy x**

Temperance stood, key in hand, and taking a deep breath she slid the key into the lock. What was she so afraid of? _It's just my apartment, gees Bones pull yourself together. Bones? Ha I'm starting to call myself that now._ Just then she was snapped out of her thoughts.

"Hey Bones you gonna open that door before I give the cleaners in your apartment block some work to do" Booth said, juggling two bags of Thai food and a brown paper bag.

"Yeah, sorry Booth. Just er, you know trying to remember if I picked up my mail this morning from downstairs. Wouldn't wanna let it build up you know. Gotta keep on top of the bills" she lied. She was thinking again, thinking how lonely her apartment felt. Sure, she'd liked it that way, but not any more. After Booth's 'death' and now Zack's betrayal, the last thing she needed was time alone with her thoughts.

"Mm hm" he nodded towards the door and she turned the key and pushed open the door to her apartment.

Booth kicked the door shut and, with Temperance taking one of the bags from him, he turned to make sure it was shut. Then, like all their previous 'get togethers' Booth locked the door, turning the key and putting the chain across. _It's not like I ever intend to stay, or ever do stay, but after Epps and every other threat to their lives it was better safe than sorry._

Booth followed her to the kitchen and helped unload the food. "So Booth, what's in there?" she said pointing to the brown paper bag he'd gotten from the liquor store next to Sid's.

"This, Bones" Booth responded taking out the bottle from the bag, "just happens to be the king of all alcohol...Tequila" Booth started dancing around waving his arms like he had a red cape and was beckoning a bull

Bones let out a chuckle; she couldn't help but laugh at Booth dancing around like a fool. _How does he do it? How does he always know what to do to make me smile? Even at the worst times._

"Oof, this dancing thing sure takes it outta me Bones. Now I'm starting' to feel my age"

"Oh please Booth, YOU of all people are in your prime. I mean your muscle definition is very impressive for a man your age, although I suppose that's a necessity in your particular line of work"

"A man my age? Well thanks Bones, I think" he shrugged. "Well what's the plan tonight Bones, no cases to discuss, no evidence to go over? What could we possibly get up to?"

An hour later

Booth and Brennan sat on the floor of her apartment, her head resting on the back of the sofa. She was laughing so hard and didn't really know why. _Some joke he told? _She didn't really know and right now couldn't care less, not after the 5 or was it 6 shots? By now all Temperance Brennan remembered was that she'd stopped thinking. Logically at least.

"Ok Bones it er, wasn't that funny" Booth laughed, laughing at her, not the joke. "You're hitting it hard tonight Bones, might wanna slow down a little or you'll be out of it before midnight"

"Well Booth, maybe that's what I'm after"

"Come on Bones" he said, reaching over and taking the half empty bottle from her hands "ease up huh?"

"You know what Booth, how about you do less talking and more drinking. It's sure helping me. This was your idea remember" she took the bottle from his hands, filled her glass and knocked back another shot.

"No Bones, it's not, I mean ok it's good to let loose some times but you can't use it to hide behind. Trust me, I've been there and sinking into a world of drunkenness is not the easy way out" Booth wasn't expecting what came next, or maybe he was. Maybe he knew that at some point, no matter how strong she pretended to be, how even she would need to just let it all out.

Tears glistened in her eyes as she openly poured her heart out to him, finally being honest with what she was thinking. "Maybe it's the only logical thing I've got right now Booth. Maybe it's the only thing that'll stop me... stop me thinking that this is entirely my fault. It's my fault you got shot, it's my fault we didn't catch Gormagon sooner, it's my fault Zack turned into a cold blooded killer and maybe I'm just the same. Maybe I'm gonna end up just like Zack."

"What?" Booth looked at her, staring her right in the eyes and for once he genuinely just didn't know where this was going.

"Oh come on Booth, it's not like you haven't thought about it. Ever since I planted that seed of doubt into the jury's mind at my fathers trial, I mean it's right. What sweets said is right. I could probably rationalise, find a logical reason for just about anything. Zack did. What if I can justify killing someone? What if I can find a valid, logical argument for killing someone?" there was desperation, sadness, longing in her voice. Longing for answers and reassurance. Maybe he was the one person who could give her that.

Booth looked at her and taking her head in his hands he lifted her head up so she could see the truth and honesty in his eyes. "Bones, you are NOT like that, you hear me. There is no WAY you could kill someone"

"H-How'd you know that? How can you be so sure? Zack-"

"Zack didn't understand Bones. Not like you. I mean maybe that's partly my fault. Maybe if I'd got him more involved in the emotional side of things, in the field more...I dunno, maybe he would've seen what it's like on the outside you know. Been less...cold" Booth turned away, running his hands through his hair "We could all blame ourselves Bones, but one thing's for sure, it's NOT our fault and as much as we might hate to admit it... Zack is the only person responsible for Zack's actions."

"But" Bones said, tears rolling down her cheek "What if"

Booth was by her side, holding her, running his hand over her hair, soothingly. It wasn't often Dr Temperance Brennan fell, but when she did, Booth promised himself, he would be there to catch her. _Always. _"You wouldn't Bones, never; you'd never be like that. I know because if you even had a slight edge of that, that evil in you, you wouldn't be out there, with me, day after day catching these monsters and bringing them to justice. It's just not YOU Bones and I would NEVER let it be you."

She relaxed in his arms, trusting him, like she had done. Deep down she knew what he was saying was true.

Logically, Zack may have had more family, more love around him than any one of them but Booth was right, he hadn't been there. He hadn't seen the victim, dead, in their home, their workplace, their car. He didn't see their life, seen their family crumble when they found out what had happened. To Zack bones were just bones, he compartmentalized maybe a little too much.

To her, although she gave the appearance that she could separate the person from the bones, she couldn't. In truth, she never had been able to, not really. She was more human than she liked to let on and at that realisation, that moment of pure honesty, with herself... she felt she had one more honest thing she just had to do.

For once, she just wanted to prove that she was more than bones and dead bodies. She wanted to prove that she could not only think, but that she could feel. Moving out of Booth's arms and looking into his eyes she did the only thing she could think of to finally feel, truly feel.

**Ooh can you guess what's coming next? Remember guys, reviews make me happy. Any ideas you have, let me know.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Well, first of all I have to admit I don't own Bones. Secondly, I think I'm addicted to writing so if anyone can recommend a good shrink please let me know. Keep on reviewing guys, loving the comments so far. Trying to keep the storyline as true to character and realistic as poss for ya'll!**

_Oh my god, she's kissing me. Bones is kissing me! Mmmmm, wait no, stop thinking that. She's drunk. She's good, that's what she is. Definitely better than the little mistletoe incident. Yeah but she's only doing it cos she's drunk. She doesn't really want me; she just wants to feel something. If it was someone else here she'd be doing the same thing. Oh come on, this is Bones; you know she's not like that. Stop fighting with your thoughts and pull yourself together man!_ Booth knew her better than she realised and that's why he realised that as much as he was enjoying a lip lock with the good doctor, it just wasn't right. _Not like this._

"Bones wait" he said pulling away from her

"What's wrong Booth? Don't you want me?" she said trying to be as seductive as she could

"It's not that Bones"

"Oh come on Booth am I not blonde enough for you? Is that it? You can't say you haven't thought about it, about me" she started running her hands up and down Booths chest

"Ok Bones, you must be reallllllly drunk, cos I'm pretty sure this just isn't you"

Getting that feeling of being knocked back, yet again, Brennan started to do the only thing she knew. "Oh come on Booth, I'm just kidding. Lighten up" she pretended

Sensing the hurt in her voice Booth tried to explain, "Bones it's not that I'm, you know, not attracted to you. I mean not that I think of you like that er, you know well not often I mean. Oh heck" Booth was confusing himself now

"That's ok Booth, like I said, kidding" she tried to but on her bravest smile and chirpiest voice as she sat back on the sofa, filled up her shot glass and tilted it towards Booth, knocking it back straight.

Booth unlocked the door and gave one final look back at her as he left. Leaving, just walking out the door. _Wasn't that what Bones normally did? Ran? _But right now was not the time for this conversation.

"So, I'll call you when we have another case Bones?"

"Yep, you do that soldier" Bones said, saluting from her position on the sofa, looking totally wasted, totally un-Bones like.

"Bye Bones"

And with that he left, walked right out of her apartment. Seeley Booth, former sniper, FBI special agent was running away. He laughed to himself when he realised how the tables had turned. _Normally she's the one running away from things. _

It was only when he was half way back to his apartment that he realised, even with the windows down and the cool midnight breeze to keep him awake, he really should not be driving. Ok so he'd only had 2 shots and he knew he could handle much more than that but with everything that'd been going on it's not like he'd been getting much sleep.

His mind drifted back to Bones, she was probably sitting there, alone in her apartment, drinking herself into a state and getting more upset and more analytical than even her sober self. If that was possible. _What if this is it? What if I've drove her back into her shell? What if she becomes even more closed than when we first met? Just when I thought I'd finally gotten through to her. Lets face it Seeley, you wanted her! That kiss, the way she touched you, it wasn't like with Cam or Tessa, or even Rebecca. This was more than that, SHE is more than that. _

Booth had told Temperance things that he hadn't told anyone before, probably in an attempt to gain her trust, maybe because he really did feel like he could be totally honest with her and she wouldn't judge. That's what most of their little food fests would end up as, take out, case work, leading to dead ends and no more progress than when they first started. It was then things would turn to un-work related subjects. He couldn't remember when it started becoming one of their rituals and if he was being honest, most of the time he turned up at her place with the take out and case files, he knew they weren't gonna suddenly get a major lead. But he enjoyed being with her, around her, and he'd use any excuse to see her. _Maybe that's why I ran. Maybe I'd fooled myself that this was all one sided, that there was no way she'd be interested in me like that. No way would she think of me like that, but after tonight? No, she was an ultimate professional, she'd never let herself develop feelings for her partner, surely?_

Booth recalled how close they'd become, how during one of their late night honesty sessions, Booth had told her about his time as an army ranger, his feelings about being turned down by Rebecca and his hurt at not being able to be a full time dad to his son. In turn she opened up about her time in foster care, about why she really chose forensic anthropology, how she felt about finding out the truth about her parents. They came to lean on each other, to trust each other and to open up. To Booth, this was more than attraction, more than lust, more than anything he'd felt before and it was because of that he didn't want to jeopardise what they had. But being a hopeless romantic he just couldn't help but wonder. _What if it could be something better? Something more?_

He pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind and pondered his next move. Not really knowing what to do next or how to tackle the mountain that was, Dr Temperance Brennan.

**So guys, what does he do? Does he ignore what's happened? Does he try and show Bones how much she really does mean to him? Will she even care when she's sober? What'd you think?**


	4. Chapter 4

**Nope, still no ownership of Bones. Damn it! Here's the next chapter, any feedback is greatly appreciated. Thanks to my reviewers so far, I'm trying to make this story a bit different to what's already out there so hopefully you like!**

Booth had given that night a lot of thought, too much probably. He hadn't heard from her for the past few days and no new cases had come up, so he really couldn't think of any good excuse to just 'pop by'. He wondered if she even remembered what happened, although she was very drunk and probably didn't, he convinced himself. He just knew he had to get his mind back on his work, before he got into hot water with Cullen. One thing was for sure, Cullen would not tolerate distractions and errors in his work because of them.

Back in the lab, Temperance had busied herself with limbo cases, trying to keep herself and her overactive analytical mind busy. She was trying to block things out, Booth's death which she never really thought about before it happened and then he came back so soon afterwards that it all seemed a blur. She never really did allow herself time to process all the emotions that that caused her to face. Then Zack and the gormagon incident. Sure they'd solved one of their biggest cases but look at the cost. Her student, her friend, one of the family. She missed him already. She kinda remembered that night, after she left the hospital with Booth. She remembered the alcohol, the food, the kiss. _God, that kiss._ Hopefully the whole only joking lie had worked, she wasn't sure. She hadn't seen him in days, or heard from him.

Temperance rationalised that he was busy; _his job doesn't revolve around the Jeffersonian. _Sometimes she forgot that, she realised that apart from their work together, she didn't really know what the rest of his FBI world was like. _He knows all about my work, limbo cases, conferences, my books. _She felt guilty that she hadn't bothered to take an interest in his work, like he did with hers. _No wonder he thinks I'm cold and uncaring, he always asks about me, my work, Russ, dad, how I am. I barely even take an interest in his life. No wonder he doesn't think about me in that way. He deserves better. _She snapped herself out of those thoughts, since when did she become so caring? Since when did she let, or want to be let, into anyone's life in that way. _It just brings more hurt, that's why you keep your distance._ Temperance wondered what was happening to her, she was changing, and when she thought about it she had been for a while. She could put it down to only one thing. _Booth._

Neither of them seemed to want to take the first step and admit what they both thought...felt. Angela had seen this happen so many times and while they thought she was crazy, not matter how much they insisted they were professionals, friends at most, Angela knew differently. _What happened with Max, Booth saving her numerous times including the gravedigger incident and dragging himself out of his hospital bed injured to go save her, Booth's death, Zack's betrayal. One thing that kept Bren going through all that was Booth. He was, is, always there for her. Slowly Bren has opened up, become more human, more 'heart' and less head. _Angela knew that even though they were avoiding each other now, they would eventually have to face up to reality. _They're meant to be._

Temperance had made Angela promise not to say or do anything about what she told her, about her and Booth and the drunken incident the other night. For the most part she hadn't said anything, but 

she was fed up of them avoiding something that could be so amazing for Brennan and Booth. So, Angela decided, she needed advice. She knew exactly who to turn to, none other than her conspiracy loving hubby to be, Jack Hodgins. Jack was all about conspiracy theories, so, she thought, maybe they could come up with one of their own. Between them they had the drive, Angela, and the mastermind, Hodgins.

Jack hadn't seemed too shocked by what had happened, explaining that even he knew it was just a matter of time before it happened, "Maybe you've brainwashed me Ang"

"Oh please Jack, you wish. And who exactly would I have conspired with to do that huh?" Angela said, giving him a reassuring kiss.

"I have no idea and I honestly don't care, wash away baby, wash away" he said, falling back into bed with the love of his life.

After spending an hour in bed recovering from their 'brainstorming session' they came up with an idea, a way to lightly persuade or rather, push, the two partners together and force themto realise what it'd be like if they didn't have each other.

"Ang, are you sure this is worth it. I mean, it's a big risk"

"Hey, you thought of the idea and if you, Mr 'Conspiracy Theorist' think it'll work, then that's good enough for me. Besides, it'll be worth it in the end"

They gave each other a nod, needing one more person to help them complete their sneaky plan. Crossing their fingers and picking up the phone, Angela Montenegro dialled the number and held the phone to her ear. Letting out a sigh, she heard the phone click, and a familiar voice answer.

**So guys, who's it gonna be and what will the plan be? Will it be someone from Brennan's family, Russ or Max maybe? Or maybe someone to do with Booth, a family member, Caroline, Cullen, Rebecca? How about someone from the lab or someone none of us know about? What'd you think? Should I skip straight to the fluffy side of life or make it a bit more angsty for our favourite pair? Please review and let me know who / what you think... Mwah x x x **


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey you guys, sorry for the delay. Been super busy at work! Anyway, please R&R. All feedback is good feedback!**

**And for legal purposes I admit, I do not own Bones...**

Booth got off the call and immediately his thoughts went back to Bones. Although he hadn't seen or heard from her in the days since 'the incident', she certainly had occupied a lot of his thoughts. Seeing as though she hadn't been in touch he had convinced himself it obviously was a mistake. Maybe it was best this way, he had Parker, his job, friends...it wasn't like he _needed_ a girlfriend, right? Besides, if he wanted female company he knew he could get some quite easily. No strings, no ties, that was the best type he tried to convince himself.

Booth drove the familiar drive to the Hoover building; he hadn't been in much since the Gormagon incident. How could he not have realised Zack was a killer. Part of him felt ashamed, embarrassed... he'd built up quite a reputation as one of, no, _the_ top agent in the FBI and he knew that while he wasn't perfect, surely he should've picked up on it sooner. But hey, no-one's perfect.

Booth stopped by his office, sat in his chair and tried to regain some composure. He had to start to compartmentalize his feelings, before he lost his job. _Compartmentalize_, he thought, Bones' word. He started to get back to work, organizing his paperwork, sorting his desk, finishing off his reports. Hopefully his boss wouldn't be too hard on him.

Booth's phone started to ring, his office phone this time. Booth saw the extension and knowing it was his boss calling he picked it up straight away.

"Sir"

"Booth, my office"

"On my way sir"

Booth knew he'd probably be in for a ticking off from Cullen, for not being in as much as he should. But he also knew Cullen wouldn't stay mad for too long, slap his wrists and send him on his way he expected.

"Sir"

"Booth come on in, take a seat"

He sat down, waiting for the shouting to start, but it didn't.

"Booth, you know you're one of if not the best Special Agent we got here in DC. As your boss it's my job to keep an eye on you, however as I'm sure you can appreciate, we all have a boss" Cullen paused, picking his words carefully.

"Anyway, it's been noticed by my bosses that there's been a lot going on with you lately and maybe your head isn't on the job as much as it should be" Booth knew not to interrupt.

"I'll be straight with you Booth, your work with the Jeffersonian has been remarkable and the team has made a very significant contribution to your case closure rate"

"Thank you sir. I agree, our work with the FBI is invaluable"

"Absolutely Booth and because of that, maybe it's cause me to overlook a few things. Like your relationship with Dr Brennan"

"My relationship?"

"Booth, you're an FBI agent, you belong in the field. The people at the Jeffersonian, they're squints and squints belong in the lab"

Booth knew what was coming, he knew that whilst he'd seen that they weren't just 'squints' but people, very valuable people, the rest of the FBI were still stuck in that stereotypical mind frame.

"What are you saying sir?"

"Well Booth, after some thought and numerous talks with my own superiors, we feel that there have been too many lapses, shall we say, in both your work and judgement. Both you and Dr Brennan have been involved in numerous incidents that shouldn't have occurred and that have not only been at the expense of both of yours health but also to the Bureau. People have been put in the way and put in danger unnecessarily and we cannot sit back any longer and let it carry on."

"But"

"Booth, a person with no gun, no badge, no training, what are they?"

Booth knew the answer; he just didn't want to have to say it out loud

"Booth?"

"A civilian, sir"

"Exactly, and whilst we appreciate all Dr Brennan's hard work, we have to face facts that when she goes out into the field, she is still just that... A civilian"

"I understand" Booth said, looking down at his tie knowing that at least now he had a reason not to see her again

"We will still need the services of Dr Brennan and her team and whilst we are not looking to end your position as liaison, we just need to maximise your talents Booth, get the best out of you as an FBI agent. You know Booth, you could be in my shoes one day. Every agent in here knows you're the cream of the crop...so to speak. That's what you need to be focusing on Booth" Cullen was now standing behind Booth, hand on his shoulder.

"Booth, effective immediately we will no longer be authorising Dr Brennan to accompany you on any investigation work, other than the crime scene itself. Do you understand?"

"Yes sir" Booth knew it made sense. He knew that when she was with him he couldn't fully concentrate. Fair enough she knew martial arts, but there was only so far that could go and this had been proven on numerous occasions. Booth knew there were situations that would not have happened had he been working alone. Although he knew that there were situations where if she hadn't have been there to save him, he didn't know what would have happened. Besides, he reasoned, he still got to work with the team and she still got to go to the crime scene, just not the investigations. It wasn't that bad, really?

Booth saw Cullen sit down in his chair and adjust his tie, he took it as his cue to leave. He knew no matter how much he argued with his boss or tried to convince him, at the end of the day Cullen was his boss, this order had come down from above and he really did have no say in the matter. He either went along with it, or lost his job. And this job was his life, he couldn't throw that away. Booth stood up and began to leave the office when Cullen interrupted.

"There is one more thing before you go Booth"

**Hmmmm, what's going on? What's the other thing? What will Bones say? Can he really do it without her?**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello all, sorry for the delay. Been crazy busy at work... anyway, here's the newest chapter. Enjoy!**

Booth paused; he knew Cullen wasn't one for saving the best till last.

"You have to understand Booth, when the board of directors spoke to me, they were pretty certain that they wanted Dr Brennan in the lab. You know, where the squints should be. In order to maintain Dr Brennan's involvement with the field side of things, albeit on a smaller scale, I had to make some compromises."

Booth turned around not knowing what to expect.

"You're the best agent we've got Booth. The bureau has a particular interest in making sure you stay that way. Hell, lets be honest, it won't be too long before I move on and you'll end up in this chair. Therefore, we've decided that whilst you seem to obviously work well on your own and with Dr Brennan, you seem to be drifting away from us a little. Less time in the office etc"

"Sometimes my cases mean I'm doing a lot of investigation work Sir"

"I understand that Booth and because you are our best, we think it's about time you started passing on some of those skills and working on developing your successor. Just like I have with you Booth"

"What'd you mean? Oh god not another lot of those boring seminar things Sir, you know how I hate those. I nearly fell asleep at the last one and seeing as though I was the one delivering it, that was not good" Booth said, shuddering as he recalled the boring 3 hour lecture to some wannabe agents in training.

"Trust me Booth; no one wants to go through that again. Those poor kids are probably still traumatised from your last talk" Cullen joked.

"Ok, so I'm not good at the whole speech giving thing... I'll admit that"

Cullen sat back in his chair and letting out a sigh, he delivered his last piece of news, "Booth, we'd like to assign you a partner... an FBI partner"

He was in shock, he had Bones, and he didn't need a partner. Especially some rookie that needed supervising and telling how to hold a damn gun properly. Cullen had been his boss for long enough to see that Booth wasn't really thrilled with the idea.

"Now, before you say anything it's not gonna be some rookie that can't even shoot a gun ok? Last thing we need is you getting distracted and having to babysit some kid. That's why I hand picked this agent myself. They've got good potential, just need polishing up, bit of a wild one but not in a bad way. They got all the skills and attributes, reminds me of when you first started, fresh from the army, raw, used to doing things the how shall I put this... unconventional way. I think they'll make a good replacement for you Booth and in the meantime while you're passing on your pearls of wisdom, I think you'll get along."

"Who is it? It's not Charlie is it Sir, cos honestly he really DOES belong behind a desk. I mean I know I'm good, but even I'm not THAT good to be able to turn him into 'super agent', you know what I mean?"

"No, it's not Charlie. Gees who'd get me my morning coffee and bagel then huh Booth? A man's gotta eat. No, this agent is a transfer from one of our other offices."

"A transfer? So what's his background?" Booth had to admit the idea of mentoring an agent wasn't all bad. As long as they could handle themselves and wasn't a rookie to the procedures and protocols, he'd survive.

"Well, as I said, this isn't a new guy Booth. Agent Banks is a very experienced agent" Cullen opened the file on his desk "25 years old, moved to our jurisdiction two months ago and since then has been working on a case where some nut job is stalking his ex girlfriend. This guy already killed two people, males, out of jealousy. One worked with his ex and the other was a car dealer showing her a new car. I spoke to Banks earlier and arranged for you two to meet up. According to Banks the case should be closed and the guy caught tonight so you be at the Caritas karaoke bar for 7.30pm and Banks will meet you there"

"Caritas? Ok sure, so what about his background? Where'd he work before? What's his record like?"

"I'll leave that for you two to discuss tonight... give you something to talk about huh" Cullen smiled and Booth took it as his cue to leave.

"Well if that's all Sir?"

"Yep, that's it from me Booth, no more surprises from me today. You take the rest of the day off, I'm sure you'll be having a late night tonight"

Booth left the office and stopped off at his own. He flicked on his computer, curiosity getting the better of him he searched the employee files. He hated going into things unprepared and without his research. He was proud in a way, that Cullen had pretty much told him he was going to become Deputy Director one day and that by doing this he was ensuring the criminals would continue to get caught, even if not by himself. As Booth waited for Banks' file to upload he felt quite smug, that was until he got the 'Access Denied – Confidential' pop up. _Cullen knows me too well,_ he thought. Oh well, he'd have to wait.

Having been given the afternoon off, Booth took this as his chance to go update Bones. She wouldn't be pleased about the investigation side of things being taken away, but with losing Zack and all the extra work she now had to do herself, he was sure she wouldn't have time to get out of the office much anyway.

**Well, there you have it, Booth's getting a partner. So what's Agent Banks' story. Will Bones get on with this new agent? Are they going to be any good? Hmmmm... we'll have to wait and see!**


End file.
